An Elven Christmas
by Galathilion
Summary: J.K. Rowling ends up in Rivendell for Christmas. It's a story I wrote for Creative Writing class, and it's (amazingly) short.


Disclaimer: The Lord of the Rings and its characters are not mine, and J.K. Rowling certainly isn't mine. There you go.

Author's note: This was a story I wrote for my Creative Writing class. My teacher had us make three columns on a piece of paper, and in the first column we listed five people everyone knows. In the second column were seven places. In the third were nine events or things that could happen to you. They could be fictional. Then she arbitrarily said "Circle the second one in the first column, the fifth one in the second column, and the sixth one in the last column." We had to write a short story that made sense and used all three of the things, in this case J.K. Rowling, Rivendell, and Christmas. I came up with this. CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM PLEASE!!!

            "Suilad, Lady Rowling," came a lyrical voice behind her. J.K. Rowling turned, suppressing a sigh of exasperation, her hand still on the doorknob to her room. The dislike in the Elf's voice was not difficult to detect, nor did it require much reasoning to identify the speaker.

            "Suilad, Haldir," she replied, not bothering to hide her own irritation at his presence. The Elf seemed to run into her at least three times a day, and each time made a point of showing his disdain.

            "I see you are learning our ways," he said, referring to her greeting.

            "I've picked up a few things," she answered noncommittally.

            "Perhaps you will soon learn how to return to your home," Haldir replied, then continued on his way. Rowling looked after him in surprise; it was the closest he had ever come to saying something nice. Then again, he was probably only implying that he wanted her to leave as soon as possible. She entered her room and collapsed onto the bed with a sigh of relief. It had only been a week since she appeared in the library of Rivendell, just as bewildered as Lord Elrond, who had been more than a little startled by her sudden arrival in his library. She was still unsure how it happened. 

            She had been sitting at her desk reading The Lord of the Rings in an attempt to come up with new ideas for her next Harry Potter book. The power had gone out just a few minutes before midnight, and she had decided to go to bed. But as she was rising, she placed her hand upon an illustration of Rivendell, and the next thing she knew, she was standing in the Elven library with a very surprised Lord Elrond.

            Since then, she had tried in vain to figure out how to return to her world. Rivendell was full of wonders, not the least of which the Elves themselves, but the week here had been filled with worry and the stress of trying to adapt to a completely unfamiliar place.

            As they always did when she was alone in her room, her thoughts drifted to London and her home. It had been Christmas Eve when she left, and at first she had despaired at the idea of missing it. But Lord Elrond had made a very good point: she did not know if time passed differently in Middle Earth than it did in London. It could be that when she returned, a year would have passed, or it could have been only an hour.

            Suddenly there came a knock on the door. "Who is it?" Rowling called out, trying to keep her irritation at the disruption from reaching her voice.

            "Lord Elrond." Though muffled by the door, the musical voice of the Lord of Rivendell was unmistakable. It was one of Rowling's few comforts in this strange place. She rose and opened the door. He stepped inside, maroon robes swirling gracefully about his tall frame, thin lips curving in a comforting smile. "Are you enjoying your time here, Lady Rowling?"

            "Of course, m'lord. The food is heavenly, and the music…I wish I could take it back with me. You all have such beautiful voices," she replied with an answering smile. "But," she continued, and her smile faltered a little, "I am missing London. It would be wonderful if I could show you around. Big Ben, the Tower of London, all the beautiful cathedrals…and Christmas. It's always such fun. I've been looking forward to it for months, just like a child."

            Elrond chuckled. His blue eyes sparkled with mischief as he replied, "Perhaps you do not have to miss Christmas. The Elves have not had opportunity to celebrate for some time. What are your customs for this festivity?"

* * *

            Rowling looked about her at the transformed dining hall. Wreaths and greenery were hung from the domed rafters, and all the tables were decorated with exquisite green and red fabrics. The Elves seated at them were dressed in their finest, a dazzling assortment of dresses and robes the like of which she had never seen. Though she had not yet seen it, she had been told that there would be a wonderfully decorated tree outside with mounds of gifts piled beneath it. Everything was perfect. Lord Elrond had done wonders, preparing all of this in a mere four days. And the best thing was, all she had done was work on her own gifts.

            Even better, though, was the fact that she had found a way back to London. When she had arrived, the Elven ladies had quickly found new clothing for her and confiscated her simple slacks and sweater. Caught up in the moment, she had completely forgotten about anything she had been keeping in her pockets. Just a few days ago, the contents of her pockets had been returned to her, and among them was a photograph of her house that she had been carrying with her. Elrond had reasoned that if placing her hand upon a drawing of Rivendell would bring her here, then doing the same to a drawing of her house would take her back. She had been more than willing to try the idea. The drawing was now finished, and she had decided to attempt it after the Christmas celebration was over. From what she had already seen, the Elves knew how to throw a party, and she had made a pledge to herself that she would enjoy this evening to the best of her ability.

* * *

            Rowling glanced down at the empty plate and glass before her and smiled contentedly. The food was better than she had dreamed it could be, the entertainment delightful. The Elves had put on quite a show for this, with dancing, singing, and storytelling galore. She had no idea how long it had been since she began the meal, but so far she had definitely fulfilled her pledge to enjoy herself.

            Suddenly her attention was drawn to the head of the table as Lord Elrond rose and called for silence. "Elves of Rivendell, I hope that you are all enjoying yourselves. In a few minutes, we shall all go outside to the tree and exchange gifts, but before we leave this meal, I would like to thank Lady Rowling for this celebration. Tonight, she is to return to her world, but on the behalf of Rivendell, I would like to say—" he turned to her with a smile, "—it has been a pleasure knowing you, and we wish you the best upon your return. The doors of the Last Homely House will be forever open to you and yours." The Elves broke out into thunderous applause. Elrond motioned for her to stand beside him, and when she had joined him said softly, "You should make a speech in return." Then he sat down.

            Rowling froze, her thoughts in complete chaos. When the Elves saw that she did not sit down, they fell into silence. Since they were obviously waiting for her to speak, she decided she might as well give it a try, as it would look very awkward for her to sit down now. "I hadn't planned to…to speak here," she began, and winced at the way she sounded. "but now that I have the opportunity, I would like to thank all of you for an incredible week and a half. Rivendell is a beautiful place, but it was the people that made this experience so wonderful. When I got here, I had nothing but the clothes on my back. You gave me dresses to wear, food to eat, and a bed to sleep on, even though as far as you knew, you would receive nothing for it. You were kind, generous, and most of all friendly. I am very glad that I could give some of that back by helping with this celebration. But something I realized as I was explaining Christmas to Lord Elrond was that I really didn't have to explain anything. The spirit of Christmas is the spirit of generosity that you have already shown me in so many ways. It is that spirit that we are celebrating tonight, and for which I thank you." 

            For the second time that night, the Elves erupted into applause, but much louder than before. After a few moments Elrond rose and led the way outside, Rowling at his side. When she saw the tree, she gasped in awe. Rather than cut one down and bring it inside, the Elves had decorated a live tree. They had hung marvelous blue lanterns from every possible bough as high as they could climb, and the effect was both eerie and ethereal. Behind her, the Elves came out of the dining hall and moved into a circle about the tree. Faces bathed in blue and silver light, they linked hands and sang to the stars, voices so angelic that Rowling found herself crying. Though she could not understand the words, and knew that there was no mention in them of Christ, it seemed to her that there was more Christmas spirit here than she had ever experienced. With tears tracing silver rivers upon her face, she lifted her eyes to the stars and let her heart soar.

* * *

            Rowling watched the Elves from a rock near the tree, feeling the joy and love in the air. She chuckled as she watched them unwrapping their gifts; they hadn't quite understood the concept of wrapping the presents in the first place, and were very meticulously opening their gifts to avoid tearing the paper. She glanced down at the gifts she had been given already, piled on the rock next to her, and felt her heart swell with gratitude again. Elrond had presented her with a little silver dagger intricately decorated with bejeweled flowers and leaves. The Elven ladies had bestowed several gifts upon her, among them an elegant new dress, and a few of the children had given her their own handmade crafts. They were all stunning in their beauty and intricacy, especially the children's. She had made her own gifts with help from the ladies, but even the children's work was better than hers. Nevertheless, she reminded herself, it's the thought that counts, and everyone had accepted their gifts with just as much joy and gratitude as she had. 

            She was startled from her thoughts by a voice behind her, the last person she had expected to see tonight. "Lady Rowling, I see you are having a good time." Rowling turned and curtsied to Haldir, who was dressed in simple yet handsome green robes. "Of course. When the Elves of Rivendell throw a party, they do a very good job." She replied, letting her eyes wander again over the beautifully lighted tree. There was silence beside her; she realized belatedly he probably didn't understand her use of modern phrases. She turned to him, intending to explain, but quickly saw that Haldir was not paying much attention to her reply. Instead, he rather awkwardly handed her a rectangular-shaped gift. "I apologize for being so unfriendly to you, Lady Rowling," he said haltingly, as if he were unsure how to express his feelings. "You have done nothing to warrant it. I should not have judged you as I did. I hope that when you return we may become friends."

            Rowling was silent for a moment, dumbfounded at his apology. She looked down at the present in her hands, then remembered her speech at dinner. "Thank you, Haldir. I am pleased to know I wasn't wrong in saying that all the Elves of Rivendell are friendly and kind." She carefully tore the paper apart to find an Elven lantern, identical to the ones that decorated the tree. Haldir took it back just long enough to light it, and Rowling gasped in delight as the delicate blue light flooded her little niche. "It's beautiful, Haldir," she exclaimed in genuine happiness. When she turned back to him, he was smiling as well. "I am glad you are pleased." he said, and rose to leave, but just before he turned to walk away he added, "I am not from Rivendell. I am an Elf of Lothlorien!" Then he was gone, melting into the shadows. 

            Rowling smiled after him, thinking that all was truly right with the world. Just then Elrond appeared at her side. "Lady Rowling, it is time."

            She glanced up at him. "Oh. Yes, I…I suppose it is." she replied, taking one last look about her before rising. She sighed. "I'll be sad to leave Rivendell. It's been like a dream, one that I don't really want to wake up from."

             "We do not wish to see you leave." Elrond replied with a sad smile, then turned and moved towards the library. Rowling gathered her gifts and followed him inside.

* * *

            Rowling woke with a start. She raised her head up off the desk and glanced around the room. Her desk light was still on, illuminating a daily calendar which read "December 24" and a large book. At the top of the right page were the words "The Lord of the Rings". The left page of the book was an illustration of a quaint little village nestled on a forested mountainside next to a beautiful waterfall. Rivendell, she remembered from her reading. The name seemed to ring a bell, but she couldn't remember anything specific. Had she dreamed of it? She couldn't remember. She glanced at her watch. It read 11:59. It was getting late, but she decided she could read for another hour.

            Suddenly the lamp on the desk went out. Rowling looked up in surprise, then groped in the dark until she found the light. She tried to turn it back on, but to no avail. "The power must have gone out," she muttered to herself. "Oh well. I suppose it is getting late, so I might as well head towards bed." She placed her hands onto the desk to push the chair back, and one of them fell upon the illustration in the still-open book. There was a strange sensation of air being pulled towards the place where she stood, and then she was gone.

            Somewhere in the house, a clock tolled twelve hours. 


End file.
